The Mystique of Inner Beauty


Do you have the answer to this puzzler?

You can't fake it, but you can definitely hide it.

You can't buy or sell it, but it never stops giving to those who have it.

You can't see it, but everyone feels when it's there.

Got your answer?

Most people chime in with answers like love, wisdom, and happiness. Others say integrity, compassion, character, honor, dignity, altruism, and a few more along these lines. So who is correct?

Well, all of them. This constellation of virtues points up the ineffable essence of inner beauty.

There's been a lot of talk in the media about it lately. Maybe you've seen the TV program that entertains its audience by lampooning the visually stunnhng contestants for their apparent lack of "true" beauty. More and more, this type of beauty seems to be missing in action, and it's all too easy to make sport of those who haven't a clue.

So, what is inner beauty? Do you have it?

It seems that the path to inner beauty, if there is such a thing, leads directly to the core of the individual. Think of it as the intuitive "heart and soul" within you.

The ancient Greeks, big fans of all things beautiful, believed a person's soul resided in the heart muscle and their early anatomical scientists often dissected the organ searching for evidence. Today this age-old analogy offers us an inkling of the divine wisdom we harbor within us, even when unaware of its presence. We intuit that everyone is beautiful on the inside, yet finding it within ourselves can be challenging.

Can you remember meeting a person you thought was filled with inner beauty? What was it about them you recognized? This is a very significant question if you know the ancient philosophy that teaches a very profound axiom: we are not able to recognize in others that which we do not ourselves possess. At some level of being, you are no different than they are or you could not have recognized inner beauty in them. What you found so attractive about them is a relevant insight to your own inner beauty.

There is nothing more exciting or powerful than discovering this wonderful truth about yourself. Information like this will shatter the old self-image with its criticisms, aspersions and fears, while laying the groundwork for a new way to experience the world in which you live.

As your inner beauty blossoms, your life experiences change profoundly. Gone are the fear, shame, insecurity, and harsh judgments of the inner critic. What replaces such baser behaviors is the most wonderful and useful asset in the world - the power that comes with loving yourself unconditionally. You somehow feel magnetically attractive, observing your own inner light as it shines through and radiates out to the people you meet. You appear more beautiful on the outside, looking and feeling healthier, happier, more vibrant and alive with passion and vigor.

The reward of such awareness is more than you imagine. This is communion with the source of love and the integrity to meaningfully communicate it to the world around you. People recognize their own inner beauty in you, and that is a definition of true love: the recognition of oneself in another.

Free your inner beauty and you'll find that things happen the way you would have them - from the most important virtue to the least significant event. You'll become more loving and giving, healthy and fit, happy and brimming with self-confidence. You'll create greater self-esteem, truly loving relationships, and a more harmonious environment in which to live.

This journey is like no other, an adventure that leads to the very heart of your being, where science and spirituality come together - deep inside your self. When you're ready to claim your personal power and reap the many rewards of your true beauty, the inner path to love and abundance awaits you.

Peter Winslow, DcH is a Life Coach and Counselor. He connects his clients to their inner power for life changing results. He offers services, products and information for optimal health, happiness and personal enlightenment.

What a difference the right voice can make in your life. Take an empowering journey with a free guided meditation mp3 by Peter Winslow. [http://www.trueinnerbeauty.com]

Cultivating Your Inner Beauty


Every woman knows that they may not be what most would call classically beautiful. What we sometimes forget that is the secret of inner beauty that can be just as captivating as the external appearance. Bright eyes that flicker, smiles that warm your heart and the radiant glow that surrounds them when they walk into the room are part of mastering the secret of creating inner beauty. When a woman has mastered the secret art of inner beauty they can fill a room with a welcoming glow. The best part of inner beauty is the fact that unlike our outward appearance, inner beauty does not wrinkle, gray or diminish with age. It only radiates stronger as you cultivate it.

There are a few secrets to cultivating this inner beauty. Just like a garden, it needs to be cared for and nurtured. Sometimes even a weed or two will pop up that needs to be removed. Knowing what your strengths are is the key to cultivating your inner beauty garden. Each woman has certain natural inner gifts from having the patience of a saint to being able to motivate and spur on those around her. Focus on that gift and help it grow stronger.

Those who have mastered the art of inner beauty also know that selflessness is the key. Sincere compliments and encouragement towards others around you will fertilize your inner garden. As a woman one of your natural gifts is that maternal compassion. Cultivating that gift by giving kind attention to those whom you meet daily will increase that warm glow. When you exercise and stretch that maternal compassion to even those people you don't know, the blossoms in your own garden will bloom into an amazing array of colors.

The secret art of inner beauty is seldom talked about as the world about us tends to focus on outward beauty. Outward beauty will fade with time, but the inner beauty will only outshine itself the more it is cultivated. A woman who can easily, through practiced effort, praise and respect all whom she meets is more beautiful than the one who looks to criticize others. When you put someone else down only reveals that a woman is dependent upon her outward appearance to judge beauty on. Someone once said that "A woman's beauty shines with age".

The beauty that this refers to is that the outward beauty of a woman is a direct reflection of her inner beauty.

Commercialism pushes the idea of outward beauty, but the most beautiful woman in the world are those who have fanned the embers of their spirit to have the flames of love, the flames of hope, the flames of compassion, the flames of courage and most importantly, the flame of a pure heart. These flames are truly the source of the radiant glow which will enable a woman to outshine any outwardly beautiful woman.

This inner beauty cannot be bought with money; it has to be cultivated with time. Just like the planting of a seed, it needs watering, sunshine, and weeding to grow into the amazing flower it was destined to be. Every woman can be beautiful. It begins with cultivating with your own inner beauty.

Discover Inner Beauty Through Wicca

We sometimes ask ourselves--Why are we here? Time flies so fast these days. We sometimes forget what we're actually living for. We feel empty as days pass, and we would try to participate in activities that would fill the void deep inside us. At the end of the day, no amount of working, clubbing, shopping, or drinking would appease our spirits. Amidst fame, fortune, and money, we still feel desperation all over. This leads us into asking this profound question, "What is the reason behind my existence?"

Fortunately, Wicca presents us with reasons that make sense. It is a religion based on discovering the inner aspect of one's being, and altering any emotions that obviously hinders an individual to growth and discovery. It did not take a year and a day for a lot of Wiccans to realize their goals in life. They started with small, simple steps that eventually led them in understanding the big picture.

Wicca is still faced with a lot of social stigma. Weird, evil, strange, and wicked. These are just some of the words that unfortunately have been glued to Wicca as a neo-pagan religion. From time immemorial, minor religions have always been treated with irreverence by the dominant church. Religious persecutions and witch hunts have proven to be nothing but futile as centuries passed. Witchcraft endured these tough times, and was able to preserve their core beliefs and values.

Wicca had always been recognition of the endless beauty that our world offers. Wicca teaches the ways of freedom, and experiencing magnificence in whatever one chooses to do. All throughout the 20th century, Wiccans have always expressed their mission as this: aiding oneself in the path of self-realization through acknowledging beauty in nature.

As the old adage goes, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. This is partially true to Wiccans, traditionalist or modernists alike. To Wiccans, beauty should be seen in everything. It is through this acceptance in the magnificence in nature, that a person finds inner beauty within. When one looks at a work of art, or a lovely scenery, it invokes a overwhelming joy and happiness. In a state of bliss, one finds himself more vulnerable to feelings on the other side of the spectrum-- anger, hate, misery, and depression. These are just some of the negative emotions that we are most aware of when we already have experienced true happiness. When this happens, we will unconsciously find ways on how to get rid of these unfavorable emotions for good. Wicca promises nothing but inner peace and beauty. The commitment of every Wiccan is to progress spiritually, and denounce anything that pollute and corrupt their souls.

Wicca as a religion is all about engaging in practices allowing individuals to break free from stressors of everyday life. Expressing oneself through Wiccan spells is rediscovering the beauty of what lies inside each and everyone is what Wiccans believe as the one of the most fundamental reasons of our existence.

Wiccan is all about expressing your spirituality. It's about freedom and the feeling of unity which you can feel through Wiccan spells and rituals. Dr. Harlan Kilstein provides you with a hundred and one ways of freely expressing your needs and wants through powerful Wiccan spells. Here's to guaranteed success in your pursuit to ultimate success and happiness! Take a peek at http://wiccapowerspells.com and you are sure to be more motivated and driven in the fulfillment and possibility of your dreams and goals like never before.

Inner Beauty Tip

If you were to choose, which gift would you want? A gift in a pretty gold box with a bow or one in a plain paper bag that looks like it's been used. Now be honest...Would you want the pretty package or the brown bag?

I have played the white elephant game before, where everyone brings gifts, and then you get pick one. And sometimes it's hard to decide. Do I pick the big one that I think is maybe going to have something really good in there or do I pick the one that doesn't look as good, but might have something even better? Because you never know!

I think if we would admit it, a lot of us are drawn to the pretty package. A brown bag may not even look like there is hardly anything in there. But what if we found out what was really inside each of these packages?

And let's say that in the pretty gold box, we found a couple rotten brown bananas, a smelly, dirty sock and an apple that's rotting too. All right, so not what we might expect. Right? Here was a pretty package and there was rotten fruit and a stinky sock. Not good! So let's say that what we found in the plain brown paper bag was a bracelet. And that the bracelet is gold and silver and has two hearts connecting with each other. The bag was plain packaging, but it had something really beautiful inside.

And so, as we think about these packages I want us to think about ourselves. Some of us might feel like we are plain Jane, a boring person on the outside. From our outer beauty we may just feel, we're just plain. And yet, we see people in our schools, in our churches, and all around that are in these really pretty packages. However, sometimes those people that seem to have it all together, the movie stars and the rock stars, may look perfect on the outside. But sometimes they might be dying away or rotting away on the inside. I have to admit, I was one of those people. People might have looked at me and said, man she's got it all together. But on the inside I was dying away, and there wasn't true beauty on the inside. It was all outer beauty.

And yet, you may feel today that you are just that plain Jane. That you don't look like anything special, you're not model material. You may not like certain parts of your body. Like me, you may have acne scars, or you might feel overweight, or have other issues. But you know what? On the inside God may be cultivating an inner beauty that radiates out. And you have a relationship with Jesus Christ, that changes your appearance. People are drawn to you because of the love that you have for other people, because of the love of Christ that is in you.

I want to encourage you to cultivate inner beauty; that inner beauty that only comes from spending time with Jesus. It's so hard to have any time in silence, but it's so important to get away. We have our music, we have our T.V., we've friends, cell phones, etc. that it's hard to unplug. I know, because these last few weeks I haven't taken that quality time with Jesus that I've needed. Sure I've spent some time in the morning, but I didn't do the real deep time of prayer and journaling. The time where I spend listening to God. And when I do break away and spend quality time with God, I felt so much different. The last few weeks I've been feeling confused and anxious, not knowing what to do. However, today I feel clarity again. I heard God speaking to me through my journal and I felt His love again.

I want to encourage you to spend quality time in prayer. Not legalistically, not saying we have to do this, this, and this. But spending that time with God so that your inner beauty can shine through. And that your inner beauty shines out, no matter what you look like on the outside. Whether you are the shiny package or the plain package. You can have inner beauty that enhances the outer beauty God has given you.

I encourage you to read over Psalm 139 this week. It talks about how we are fearfully and wonderfully made. You are special, no matter what you look like on the outside, no matter where you are at with your relationship with Jesus. You are special, and He wants you to know that today. I encourage you to cultivate your inner beauty.

Shelley Hitz has a heart is to help teen girls and women find their true beauty in Christ through her website, Teen-Beauty-Tips.com. Shelley's openness and vulnerability as she shares her own story of hope and healing will inspire and encourage you. Download Shelley's book, "Mirror Mirror...Am I Beautiful?" for free: Teen-Beauty-Tips.com

Inner Beauty and Outer Beauty

The false dichotomy between inner beauty and outer beauty has been a source of confusion to many. This is to make the clarifications needed to overcome this confusion.

The two concepts - inner beauty and outer beauty - refer to very different and unrelated things. A better term for "inner beauty" is "personal goodness." And there is no reason why personal goodness would be related, one way or another, to physical appearance. Unrelated concepts mean: zero correlation. It will be possible to find both personal goodness and lack of personal goodness at every level of physical attractiveness; and it will be possible to find physical beauty and lack of physical beauty at every level of personal goodness.

Thus, my daughter, my mother, my sister, and the women I've loved, all had both inner beauty and outer beauty. Whereas Andrea Dworkin and most of her followers are both physically ugly and horrible people. These horrible people then claim ridiculously to speak for a half of the world's population even as they command other women to toe their malignant line and maliciously attack and abuse those who would not. I doubt I am the only person who believes that women deserve a better representation than is afforded by these jerks.

It is much more sensible that women's representatives be the best, not the worst, among women. The women possessing of both personal goodness and physical beauty have far more to offer the world than women who possess neither and are against both. They also stand to make vastly superior role models to other women and motivate other women to be their best, rather than their worst, even as they stand to improve men's view of women by presenting before them a different, vastly more deserving and sympathetic, picture of womanhood.

Being sympathetic toward women's rights and advancement does not require accepting wrongdoing on the part of those who falsely claim to be speaking for women. Instead a person sympathetic toward the preceding would very much take the side of the women who are being attacked by the same. A harpy is not, nor was it ever, a valid feminine ideal. Besides the "traditional" maternal ideal there are others - professional woman, artistic woman, activist woman, working woman, high achiever woman - that are also valid; and all of the above are better both for the women who are doing it and for the rest of the world.

The dichotomy between outer beauty and inner beauty is therefore a false one. The two are unrelated to one another. We will see both good people and bad people at every level of physical appearance. And we will see both physically beautiful and physically ugly people at every level of personal goodness.

What is Inner Beauty


Inner beauty is the most important feature in our human being. All of our actions in a day draw from that inner beauty or soul, if you wish. Have you ever wondered what makes you act the way you do or who you are, inside? Are we are just a collection of cells that happened to come together by chance or is there some grand design someone we can't see or touch that brought us all together? Inner beauty shows itself in many ways perhaps by helping an elderly neighbor with their yard work or volunteering your time to your community.

Love is an expression of inner beauty. Does one give love on a daily basis? Does one feel Loved on a daily basis? Hope is a belief in a positive outcome related to events and circumstances in one's life and the lives of others. This can only come from a place of inner beauty. Do you feel compassion toward another human being when you see them in pain or suffering? Compassion comes from inner beauty, at times you can feel it tug at your heart, sometimes you can ignore it but deep down it's always there.

What about outer beauty? Can outer beauty, say a beautiful waterfall, a majestic mountain or the brilliant stars in heaven, be enjoyed without inner beauty? I think not. A person can be attracted by outward beauty only to find on closer examination that it is ugly on the inside. A beautiful looking person can be filled with hatred or with love. But how do we know unless we look on the inside? We often judge people when we first meet them by the way they look. It has always been said; you cannot judge a book by its cover. So look inside when you first meet people and look for that inner beauty, in the long run it is far more important than outward beauty.

What can physical things in life do for the soul? The answer is "nothing". You need to fill the soul otherwise it starves. Is your inner soul starving? You can satisfy the hunger with acts of kindness and love, there is plenty in this world to fill the soul. Use it every day and I believe you will be full in no time. After 9/11 I felt love and compassion for all of my fellow Americans, I remember sitting at a toll booth waiting for the person in front of me, fumbling to find the correct change. Any other time I would have been a bit angry at the wait but this time I would have waited all day without anger. I believe it was because we were all one during that time, one country, one people. Why can't it be like that every day as we work, play and live?

I don't have all the answers nor do I proclaim to be fault free but I do know the feelings of my own heart. I am sure that each one of us has thought some of these very things at some point in our lives. I don't want to be on my death bed saying, "I did it all wrong"; there are no do overs. Your inner beauty can flourish and grow, no one can quell it and no one can take it away.